I had the honor of accompanying Edith for a film project over the last 4 years and getting to know her better. I came across her through my film about the forgotten Swiss peace activist Gertrud Woker, who co-founded WILPF between the world wars. I searched for contemporary witnesses and came into contact with Edith…

 In Loving Memory of Edith We have known Edith since 2001—her Mongolian friends in Geneva, Nara and Tufshoo. From the moment we stayed with her for almost a full year in her Sécheron apartment, Edith became an inseparable part of our lives. At that time, I had just started working at UNICEF, a stone’s throw…

We are Erim and Yonca from Izmir in Turkey. We were introduced to Edith by our friend Nara during our visit to Geneva. Even if we spent only a limited time with her, she opened up endless horizons for us and the horizons she opened are unforgettable. We feel honored to have met her. A…

My deepest sympathies to Edith   I am Nene, the 14 year old son of Nara’s late nephew. I now live in Japan . I got to know Edith 5 years ago and we had a nice video chat once in a while. At that time, I genuinely believed Edith was in her mid-60s which…

Edith has been a guiding light, inspiration and laughing comrade for decades.  While she is physically gone, her spirit and the influence she’s had on countless humans across the globe will live on forever. I arrived to Geneva, young, enthusiastic and a bit naive to take up the job as WILPF’s Secretary General. Despite my…

​It’s way back in 2000, we friends visited Geneva for a Social Forum meeting.  We met Edith Ballantyne and Krishna Ahooja Patel.  It was a wonderful meeting and discussion with both legends of peace women. We wanted to start a WILPF section in India.  A WILPF section was existing in India in 1975.  Dr Sushila…

As members of the Dutch WILPF section we worked in our different roles together with Edith during many years. We learned very much during this time. Memorable was Edith’s visit to The Hague in 2015. Thank you for everything.

Dear Edith It was such a great pleasure to visit with you last in December 2024, before I left for Finnland, my home country. Maybe we both sensed it could be the last time to have a wonderful chat and exchange views – even if we didn’t always agree, in particular on the role of…

Nachruf Edith Ballentyne Noch vor 2 Wochen hat mir Edith in einem Telefongespräch erzählt, wie sehr sie der Genozid in Gaza und die ungebremste Gewalt des Israelischen Militärs gegen die Palästinenser bedrückten und was WILPF tun müsste um die Stimmen aus der Region für Frieden zu verstärken. Sie war immer am Ball und dachte aktionistisch.…

In the 90s Edith was President and I was Secretary General of WILPF in Geneva. A time where the bi-polar world, the Cold War time came to an end and the International community held a series of global conferences on human rights, on women, social common goods. Edith was very much connected within different NGO…

When I first arrived in Geneva in 1990 to take up my position as Secretary-General of the International Peace Bureau, Edith was one of the very first people I was taken to see. Her reputation had preceded her: I was somewhat in awe. But that soon dissolved when I realised what a welcoming, kind, and…

As many people have already written, Edith was a force. In 1977, she helped Indigenous Peoples of the Americas to have a gathering at the Palais des Nations in Geneva.  Despite the many attempts by various governments to stop the effort, she pressed ahead with the planning. She saw oppression and attempts to silence those…

I met Edith at the IB held in Madrid and from the first moment I realized that she was a great reference for WILPF. She was a woman with a great deal of experience and knowledge, but she maintained a discreet attitude, was open to listening and had a broad vision of peace linked to…

My daughter Lillian took this selfie during a visit to Edith a few years ago— I loved my visits to Edith apartment and treasure them. Edith was the most beautiful soul—wise, politically astute, and deeply, deeply kind. I am forever grateful for her vision, her truth, and the time she so generously gave. WILPF was…

I first met Edith in 1996 when I went to Geneva from Cambodia to  help organize a landmines review conference for the landmine campaign & she and Felicity let me stay in the WILPF house. A fleeting connection for a few months, but a huge impact on the course of my life and journey as…

Thanks for your support, Edith. Rest in Power.

Heartfelt Reflection on Edith Ballantyne’s Spirit I will forever hold onto the memory of visiting Edith Ballantyne in December 2022, just before her 100th birthday. Though nearing a century, she was full of warmth and energy—setting the table herself, placing the plates, and pouring the wine. Her grace and hospitality were remarkable, a true reflection…

I first met Edith when I was asked to organise WILPF’s 100th anniversary. While I felt the weight of this immense responsibility on my shoulders having only been with the organisation a year or so before, Edith immediately put me at ease. Rather than be terrified of disappointing everyone for whom WILPF and the 100th…